After Darkness Falls
"Déjà vu"
Disclaimer: I do not own Power Rangers, that is owned by Saban/Disney. Carri and all things related to Carri (including Jason's cougar ninjetti power) belong to KJ with many thanks. Everyone else belongs to me.
A/N: This chapter will bear some resemblence to the Turbo movie, in respects to one or two parts, and that was done intentionally. Just to let everyone know. Kim's powers were inspired by KSuzie, but unlike KSuzie's she cannot travel between dimensions, only time and space and I am expanding on them as seen in the last chapter. As always, reviews are appreciated.
Sarahna looked out through Serpentera's cockpit, she could the bright red planet of Volacia. Soon her plan would be on the right track, Jason would truly be hers, and the Terra morphers as well. It was going to be a great day. She could taste the destruction that was to come, and it filled her with joy. She could see it now, Jason and Kimberly, the children of Malifore, would bring her ultimate power and from there she would destroy everything and kill everyone in her path. Nothing was going to spoil this, nothing. "My Queen, we've picked up a ship following us." Xinas said, snapping her out of her daydream.
"Well then shoot it down. It's probably the other rangers coming to rescue their friends." She said smugly, turning to look at the two rangers, still asleep. "I was going to spare them, for a while anyway, but they've given me no choice but to kill them now. Oh well." She said with a smile, watching as the view outside began to spin as they turned around to blast the ship that was following them.
"We are ready to fire!" Xinas said, firing on the ship.
Sarahna watched from the edge of her seat as the beam headed for the tiny blue ship. "This'll be fun." She jumped up squealing and clapping as the ship exploded. "What a great show! Look at that! Look Xinas, do you see it? Five rangers reduced to nothing with a single shot, it's stupendous!"
"Tommy...no..." Kim muttered from beside her, still sleeping.
Sarahna turned and looked at her prisoners, smiling. "Prepare to enter the atmosphere and land this thing."
Kat Hillard stood at her cousins door later that afternoon. "Come on Carri, someone should be home by now. I told you I'd stop by later." She muttered as she rang the doorbell, tapping her foot. After a while she gave up and headed back to her car. She couldn't believe it, first her cousin disappeared for the better part of a decade, not telling anybody where she was going, but then when she gets back she doesn't even make time for her own cousin. Kat had tried speaking to her at both of the recent ranger meetings, but she had been unable to catch her after they had ended, and that morning Carri had been so grumpy that she could have given Zedd a run for his money.
"This is ridiculous!" Kat shouted as she slammed her phone shut and threw it into the seat next to her. She tried calling Carri's work, but they said she left during her lunch break and never returned, so she tried getting her on her cell, but she didn't answer. "I'll try again tomorrow."
Tommy opened his eyes and raised his head, trying to blink the blurryness away. "What happened?" he asked as he sat up. The last thing he remembered was telling everyone to hang on as a beam shot out of Serpentera's mouth and was headed straight for them. He remembered thinking that they were going to die, as he knew there was no way they could survive the blast. The Megaships shields wouldn't stand up to a blast like that, not from Serpentera. "Oh crap, the others!" he said as he jumped to his feet too fast and fell.
"Relax, we're over here." TJ said as he and the others came walking over to Tommy.
"Anybody have a clue as to what happened?" Ryan asked, watching as everyone shook their heads no. "Figured."
"Where are we?" Carri asked, taking note of the planet. "It looks like Earth."
"It looks like it, but looks can be deceiving. Do you feel that heat? That's way too intense for a field. I think we're on Volacia, maybe." TJ said, taking in his surroundings. They were standing in a field, surrounded on all sides by trees.
"How do you know that?" Ryan asked, already knowing the answer.
"Because I've been here before, with the Astro rangers. This was one of the planets we thought Zordon was hidden on. And if I'm right, and this is Volacia, we're going to need to morph before we leave this patch, it's too dangerous to explore this planet without some sort of protection."
"He's right," Carri said "I've never been here, but I have heard stories of it. There's supposed to be a temple somewhere on this planet, if this is where Sarahna was headed, and I have a feeling that it is, then we need to find that temple." She hoped that the stories she had heard about this planet were just that, stories.
"Well, what are we waiting for? It's Morphin' Time!" Tommy shouted, leading the team.
Jason woke up as Sarahna repeatedly slapped him into cosciousness. "Oh good, you're awake!" she exclaimed, giving him a final slap.
Looking around Jason saw nothing but molten rock around him and the path they were on, with a patch of trees in the distance. "Where are we?" he asked "And where's Kim?"
"Don't worry, she alive. For now. As for where we are, we're on Volacia, your new birth place." Sarahna said, her crooked smile getting wider as she giggled. "You see that temple over there? That is where you shall be reborn. Again. And I shall obtain ultimate power, with these." She held up the Tyrannosaurus coin and the pouch containing the other five.
"No you don't!" Jason grunted, trying to break his restraints and hit her.
Sarahna jumped up and kicked him in the face. Walking up to him she pinned him to the ground with her boot at said "Tsk Tsk. You shouldn't try and break free, it could end very badly for your sister over there." She pointed to Kim, who was still asleep and had Xinas' sword at her throat. "So I suggest," she removed her boot and lifted him up, "that you cooperate."
Jason glared at her and grunted. He did not like this one bit. "I know what you're planning to do." he said as she dragged him along by the chain wrapped around his wrists. "You're planning on reviving Dark Specter, aren't you? That's why you need me, need the coins." He knew the coins served two additional purposes aside from allowing one to become a Power Ranger. One purpose was to revive Zordon should he ever fall in battle, or to locate him if he ever vanished, that was supposed to be their only other purpose. But when Rita tainted the Dragon Coin, she also tainted the grid that the other coins were connected too. Dark Specter knew of this, and knew that since the grid had the power to revive Zordon due it's good nature, it also had the power to revive him, due the negative energy Rita inadvertantly placed in it. As such he had a temple built on his home planet, surrounding the main volcano, resembling the ruins of Murathias where he had imprisonned his younger brother Maligore. There was a space built there for the six coins to rest, and with the proper sacrifice the coins would react, reviving him.
Sarahna scoffed at him and said "Please, do you really think my plans are so small? Yes, Dark Specter has been able to communicate with me from the grave, and as far as he knows, yes, that is my plan. But by no means will I let him rule the universe. This is all for me. Just wait and see what happens." She smiled, her eyes widening as she imagined the amount of power she would have after this was all said and done with. "I can't wait."
The other rangers raced through the trees surrounding the field they were in, none of them had any clue as to how they had got there, all that mattered to them was getting to the temple and rescuing their friends. "Man I wish I had the speed the Turbo powers gave us about now." TJ said as they made it through the trees, stopping before they hit the molten rock on the other side.
"I know what you mean, but right now we need to stay focused." Tommy said "Look, I think that might be the temple over there." He pointed towards his left, at the big stone building about a mile away.
"Think we can make it in time?" Ryan asked.
"We have to." Carri said, going to continue on as Rocky grabbed her and pulled her back. "What?"
Rocky, looking down at the fiery ground said "Don't you think we should contact Billy, see if we're able to travel across that unharmed? Or maybe he has some type of new vehicles for us to use."
"That's a good idea." Carri said, mentally kicking herself for not thinking of it. "Billy, do you have any way we can travel across, well, basically lava?"
Billy's voice rang through the communicator saying "I have been working on some hover cycles in my spare time. I'...sen...em...o yo...n...w." A few minutes later five hover cycles appeared before the rangers. "They...oul..e...ble...t...g...t..ou...acr..."
"Something must interfering with the signal. Come on, we need to hurry." Tommy said, hoping they wouldn't need to contact Billy or anyone else while they were here. Each ranger grabbed a cycle, fired them up, and took off.
Tommy flew across the molten rock, he wasn't about to let his friends down. Not again. I'm coming Kim, he thought as he took the lead. Though they had had their differences before, and hadn't communicated well since they came back into each others lives, he still loved her and wasn't going to let anything happen to her. The last time something like this had happened had been a few months after the defeat of the Machine Empire. The space pirate Divatox had arrived and taken Jason and Kim hostage, sacrificing them to Maligore. He had a feeling, like someone was telling him that the events of that day were the direct cause of the events today. All because he hadn't been fast enough to stop them from being sacrificed before.
Carri pushed her cycle as fast as it would go, she wasn't about to let her friends be killed, not after all they had been through. Jason had become like a brother to her, and Kim a sister. In her eyes they were her real family and she wasn't going to lose them.
Emily sat in her living room, she had tried calling Jason earlier that afternoon, but he hadn't answered. She was beginning to wonder if he thought he'd made a mistake in being near her again. She didn't want that, she still loved him and wanted to be with him. Maybe I should surprise him, she thought as she hopped up and grabbed her keys, getting ready to head to his condo.
The car ride seemed to take forever, like the ride of doom. Either she would be embraced in open arms, or she would be rejected like a two-year olds painting in an art contest. But she had to know if he was avoiding her or not.
Once she got there she went to his floor and knocked on his door. When there was no answer she knocked again. After she waited for a few more minutes with no answer she turned and left. "I guess he'll call me when he's ready to talk," she muttered as she walked out to her car.
Sarahna looked at the two Muranthians hanging above the volcano. She thought about how poetic it was, they were once sacrificed to bring the younger brother back, and now here they were to be sacrificed for the older brother. "How does it feel Jasey, knowing that you will help to bring about greatness?"
"Honestly, it doesn't feel as good as I had hoped it would." He retorted, looking down at the lava beneath them. "Feels a little familiar, doesn't it Kim?"
Kim coughed and opened her eyes slightly. "A little," she said softly. She felt like crap, and she was sure it showed. She had somehow managed to use her powers to save her friends through the restraints and it had left her drained.
"Hey, you okay? Y'know, considering." Jason said, nodding his head towards the lava.
"Yeah, yeah, well, no. I think I may have lost my powers, or something. I haven't felt this bad since before we took a dip in Maligore's swimming pool."
"What are you talking about?" Jason asked, slightly confused. He knew what she meant, he hadn't been sick, not even a little, since getting dipped in Maligore's volcano.
Kim lifted her head and said "I'm talking about the others. Even though I was unconscious, I was still aware of what was going on around me. Tommy and the others followed us in a ship, and right before she blew it up and somehow accessed my powers and teleported them off. Like my summoning power I showed you by the lake, only without the summoning." She paused to catch her breath before continuing. "I don't know how I did it, and I highly doubt I can go it again. Like I said, I feel weak. As though my powers are gone, or nearly gone, or something. I don't know."
"Well that doesn't sound too good." Jason said, hoping that she'd be able to survive this dip. He was fairly certain he could, but he wasn't so sure about her now.
"Heh, tell me about it." Kim said, coughing.
Sarahna looked at the five golden coins resting in the slots where she had set them. She held the Tyrannosaurus coin up and marvelled at it's magnificence. "Ironic, isn't it Jasey? That your first power source, what made you who you are, will also be the end of you." She took one last look at the coin before setting it in its slot. As soon as it was in place all six began glowing, fire began to lick at the heels of Jason and Kim, and the two Muranthian rangers began to slowly be lowered into the volcano.
"It's all so perfect. So perfect." Sarahna squeeled, eyes widening as they disappeared into the volcano. "Yes, yes, yes." She whispered, clasping her hands and bouncing up and down.
"No!" Tommy shouted as he and the other rangers made it to the temple just as their teammates were being lowered in. Quickly, and impulsively he ran for the center of the volcano and grabbed onto the rope, trying to pull them back up.
"No stop!" Sarahna shrieked "you'll ruin everything I've worked so hard for!"
"I don't care!" Carri growled, punching Sarahna in the face before running over to help Tommy. As she reached him she garbbed the rope and together they began to slowly but successfully pull them back up.
TJ, and Ryan went to keep Xinas busy as Rocky went to help Tommy and Carri. Xinas drew his sword and began swinging it at Ryan, who blocked it with his Coyote Blade as TJ struck him with his Lion Lance.
Sarahna sat up, after being punched by Carri, pulled out one of her daggers and growled "I don't think so." She threw the dagger and cut the rope, dropping Jason and Kim into the lava.
"No!" Tommy shouted, reaching down into the volcano as his friends disappeared into the lava.
Laughing maniacally Sarahna said "You see, I knew I would win in the end! I hope you are all ready to die!" She watched as the crimson ranger turned, his sword drawn, ready to attack. He charged her, blinded by anger. She simply dodged his sword and kicked him into the wall as she casually walked over to the coins, throwing Carri and Rocky to the wayside as well.
As she reached the six coins a three clawed, lava rock hand appeared over the edge of volcano and pulled itself out. Laughing it said "It's so good to be back!"
"Dark Specter..." TJ whispered, his eyes fixed on the lava creature. "This was all done...to revive Dark Specter?" He couldn't believe it, he thought that they were rid of him when Darkonda blew him up, he had watched as pieces of the evil monarch flew down to Earth.
"Don't get used to it!" Sarahna shouted, an smile spreading across her face. "This device was made to absord energy into another being, I believe you are familiar with it, what with using it on Zordon and all. Only, I've made a few modications." Using the device Sarahna aimed it at Dark Specter, and began to absorb his energy.
"How dare you betray me!" he shouted, as he attempted to regain his normal, giant size.
"How dare you think it was possible to control me." Sarahna countered. The evil monarch screamed in pain as he felt his energy leaving him, being transferred into Sarahna.
Down in the pit Jason and Kim could feel the intense heat getting closer and closer, they could hear their friends fighting to save them, feel themselves slowly being pulled back up. Then, agony. Agony that they never thought possible, pain worse than Maligore's volcano, worse than anything they had ever imagined.
Kim could feel her power coming back to her, very slowly, very painfully. As though her flesh were once again being ripped off slowly, then stitched and stapled back together. It was unbearable, she wanted to scream, tried to scream, but nothing. She couldn't hear anything, couldn't say anything, couldn't do anything. All she could do was wish for death, a quick end to it all was all she wanted. It had to be better than suffering like this, it just had to be.
Jason could feel his anger taking over, his flesh being boiled off and bolted back on. He felt like his humanity was being stripped away, and the monster that was caged within breaking free. Breaking free until it consumed him, he didn't care about anything anymore, didn't care about anyone. All he wanted to do was bust out of here and kill something, someone. He didn't care who, didn't care what, just as long as something died.
"We need to stop her before she has all of his power," Ryan shouted over the monarchs screams.
"And how do you propose we do that?" TJ said asked, for once he didn't have a plan.
As they began to run towards her, to try and stop her they heard "Black Ice!" and turned to see a black ranger standing on the edge of the volcano, his sword stuck in the ground, and ice crawling up Dark Specter's body, freezing him.
"Jason?" Tommy asked as he picked himself up and stumbled over to the black Terra ranger.
"Out of my way." Jason said, throwing his friend aside. Lifting his blade up, he struck the frozen Dark Specter, shattering him into hundreds of pieces.
"Why did you do that?" Sarahna screamed, her body fluctuating between skin and lava rock. "I had him! His power was mine!"
Jason powered down, revealing his dark red eyes to everyone. "If you had continued on like that you would have been killed. He held too much power for you to handle. I did you a favor, My Queen."
Sarahna, momentarily forgetting her anger smiled at those words coming from Jason's mouth. He was hers. The dip had been a success, the evil that had been locked away inside of him by Lerigot was now free. "So my plan worked after all. Perfect. But, what happened to the other one?"
Jason smirked and said "That weakling never stood a chance in there. She was too pure, too good."
Tommy couldn't believe what he was hearing, it was Muranthias all over again, except this time there was no Kim. It was only Jason. Was he right? Had Kim been killed in the volcano? If she had then he couldn't, no he wouldn't, forgive himself. It just didn't seem possible, that the love of his life could be taken so easily. It just wasn't possible.
"Shall we kill them now, or wait?" Jason asked Sarahna, addressing the remaining Feral rangers.
"We'll wait. As much as I would love to end their pathetic little lives now, this isn't the place. No. The people of Earth need to see just how powerless their Power Rangers really are. Come, Jason, Xinas. We must return to Earth, we have a busy day ahead of us."
"You mean the Terra morphers, don't you?" Jason asked, a smile crossing his face as Sarahna nodded. "Well then, I'll teleport us back to Serpentera. Come on." And in the blink of an eye they were gone, leaving the Feral rangers defeated and stranded on the volcanic planet.
"What now?" Rocky asked, holding his shoulder as he went to help Carri up.
"Now, we try and contact Billy, or someone. See if we can get a ride off this rock, then we go from there." TJ said, helping Tommy to his feet.
As the team regrouped, trying to get a clear message through to Billy, or anyone who might have been listening, they heard grunts coming from the mouth of the volcano. Tommy was the first to run over to it, his eyes widened as he saw where the noise was coming from. "Kim!" He shouted, reaching down to try and help her up. After she made it out and caught her breath he began to question her. "How did you survive that? I heard Jason tell Sarahna that you died."
"We all did." Carri added, crossing her arms and giving her friend a hard look.
"Can we talk about this after we get home?" Kim asked, brushing her hair back.
"And how do you propose we get home?" Tommy asked "We have no ship. The Megaship was destroyed or something."
"I know that, I'm the one who saved your asses. And I'm going to get us home the same way, teleportation. Now grab on." At her command they all grabbed hold of one another while Kim closed her eyes and concentrated, red lightning sparked over them all and then they were gone, headed back for Earth.